Apparatus for making continuous strip material



May 12, 1936. J. R. GAMMETER APPARATUS FOR MAKING CONTINUOUS STRIP MATERIAL Filed May '7, 1934 INVENTOR .Tomv R. GAP/METER ATTORNEYS Patented May 12,1936 I 2,040,550

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE APPARATUS FOR MAKING CONTINUOUS STRIP MATERIAL John R. Gammeter, Akron, Ohio, assignor to United States Rubber Company, New York, N. Y a corporation of New Jersey Application May 7, 1934, Serial No. 124,339 7 Claims; (oi.1s-15) This invention relates to apparatus for making are four shown. Trained about pulleys I4, I1 is continuous strip material. an endless belt or conveyor I9 that passes over It is of especial utility in the manufacture of pulleys I4 and under pulleys l1, and passes sheet material from compositions comprising through suitable slots formed in partition I3.

5 solids dissolved in volatile solvents, or solids dis The belt I9 enters the housing I through a suitpersed or suspended in volatile or non-volatile able slot in one side thereof, opening into chamfluids. For example, the invention may be used her I2, and leaves the housing at the opposite in the manufacture of sheet material from celluside thereof through a second slot opening into lose derivatives, such as cellophane, celluloid, chamber I2. Exteriorly of the housing II] is a 10 etc., or from rubber cements, wherein the solid series of idler pulleys 20, 20 that support the 10 material is dissolved in volatile solvents, or it belt I9 as it moves, in the direction indicated by may be used in the manufactureof rubber strip the arrows in Figure 1, from one side of the material from natural or artificial aqueous dishousing back to point of starting on the other persions of rubber, such as rubber latex. side thereof.

The chief object of the invention is to'provide In the bottom of chamber I2, beneath each 15 an improved apparatus for making strip material pulley H, are respective tanks '22, each of which of the character mentioned. More specifically contains a quantity of fluent viscous material 23,- the invention aims to provide improved procedure from which the strip material is to be made. and apparatus whereby a continuous, relatively Means (not shown) is provided for maintaining n wide strip of material may be severed into a pluthe liquid in said tanks at a constant uniform rality of narrower strips; A further object is to level, which level is higher than the lowest point provide an endless support upon which the viscous on the periphery of pulleys II.

fluid material may be deposited, which support The belt I9 is made of stainless steel or other may be passed into a body of said material to suitable flexible metal and is somewhat wider coat one side thereof without exposing the other than pulleys I1 and somewhat narrower than side of said endless support to said fluid body. pulleys I4. Pulleys 20 are of different widths Other objects will be manifest as the specification according to whether the belt I9 passes over or proceeds. 7 under them. On one face of the belt I9, flush Of the accompanying drawing, 7 with the margins thereof, are respective dams or Figure l is a somewhat diagrammatic side eleribs 24, 24 of rubber or other flexible material 30 vation of apparatus embodying and adapted to that are vulcanized or otherwise aflixed to the carry out the invention, in its preferred form; belt. Said dams or ribs are on the concave or Figure 2 is a section, on a larger scale, onthe inner face of the belt as it passes around pulleys line 2-2 of Figure l; I I1 and on the convex or outer face thereof as it Figure 3 is a section, on a larger scale, on the passes over pulleys I4. The dams may be ap- 35 line 3-3 of Figure l; and proximately one inch wide and A inch thick, and Figure 4 is a detail elevation, on a larger scale, are disposed laterally of pulleys I'I when passing on the line 4--4 of Figure 1. around the latter, as is most clearly shown in Referring to the drawing, III is a housing com- Figure 2. The arrangement is such that the 40 prising an upper chamber II constituting the belt I9 in passing about pulleys I1 is carried 40 major portion of the interior thereof, and a below the level of the liquid bodies 23 whereby lower chamber I2, there being a partition l3 its outer surface and part of the outer marginal separating said chambers. The upper chamber surface of ribs 24 are coated with the liquid, said I I is warmed or heated in any usual or preferred ribs preventing the liquid from reaching the other 5 manner, and the lower chamber I2 may be kept surface of the belt or the perimeters of the at room temperature. Mountedin the upper pulleys. part of chamber I I is a horizontal series of pulleys By the method and apparatus described a suc- I4, I4, which pulleys are mounted upon respeccession of superposed coatings or deposits 25 are tive drive shafts I5 that are driven at uniform applied to the belt. In passing through the'heated' 5 speed by a suitable source of power (not shown). upper chamber II between successive coatings, Although but three pulleys I4 are shown, it will the latter are congealed or rendered less viscous be understood that a greater or lesser number by the volatilization of solvent, if the material may be employed if desired. Suitably mounted 23 is a dissolved solid, or by the drying of mois-" within the lower chamber I2 is'a horizontal series ture if the material 23 is an'aqueous dispersion. '5- of idler pulleys or sheaves I1, I! of which there Preferably the pulleys I4 are provided, at their respectivelateral margins, with circumferential angular ribs 26, 26 which constitute flanges for support said beltin spaced relation to the pulleys so that the coating 25 on the belt is not marred or mutilated.

Exteriorly of the housing 0, at the side thereof Where the coated belt I9 emerges therefrom, the partly dried coating 25 is removed from the belt, and to this end a pair of driven stripper rollers, shown diagrammatically at 2B, 28 are provided, the coating 25 in sheet or strip form passing around each of said rollers, in frictional engagement therewith, so as progressively to be "peeled or stripped from the belt. At another region of the belt, exteriorly of the housing and nearer the point where the belt enters the latter, is a cleaning and polishing device comprising a pair of suitably driven revolving brushes 29, 29 between which the belt passes, and which thoroughly clean and polish the belt surfaces so that the coating 25' subsequently will be deposited evenly thereon.

'I'he coating strip 25 is progressively and continuously slit or cut into a plurality of relatively narrow strips or threads 30, 30 after it is removed from the belt |9, and for this purpose a slitting device is positioned adjacent stripper rollers 28 to receive strip 25as it issues therefrom. As is i most clearly shown in Figure 4, said slitting de- T tance equal to one knife.

' ficiently neareach other to vice comprises a group 7 groups 31, 38, respectively,

of axially aligned disc knives 32, 32 mounted upon a suitably driven shaft 33, said knives having flat peripheral faces and being spaced apart from each other a dis- A second group of similarly shaped and arranged disc knives 34, 34 is mounted upon an axial shaft 35 that is parallel to shaft 33 and driven in the opposite direction thereto. Shafts 33, 35 are positioned sufcause intercalation of the adjacent regions of the groups, whereby the strip of material 25 in passing between the two groups of knives is slit into narrow strips or threads, and the latter are easily divided into two 5 each comprising the alternate threads cut from the strip 25, the respective threads of each group being spaced from each other.

' The strip 25 is slit as described preferably while still in somewhat moist condition, (containing from 10% to 20% moisture), and if the'strip is a composition of rubber, the latter is in unvulcanized condition. For completely drying the work, or for vulcanizing the rubber if it is composed of rubber, a suitablyheated oven 40 is provided, the groups of strands 31, 38 entering the oven through respective slots in the wall thereof. Interiorly ofthe oven are two vertically arranged series of horizontal conveyor belts," the upper series receiving group 31 of the work and the lower series receiving group 38 of the work. The upper series of conveyor belts is shown as consisting of endless belts 4|, 42, and 43, respectively, which belts are mounted upon suitable end rollers and driven at uniform speed by any suitable means (not shown). As indicated by the arrows in Figure 1, conveyor belts 4| and 43 are driven in thesame direction and belt 42 is driven in the opposite direction. Also conveyor belt 42 is somewhat offset from belts 4|, 43, the arrangement being such that the group of threads 3! may be fed along one conveyor, and delivered at the delivery end thereof onto the next lower conveyor until all in that series of conveyors have been I same speed as belts roll 44 is positioned exteriorly of the said oven for winding up the finished work as it emerges from the oven. 7

The lower series of conveyors shown comprises conveyor belts 46, 41, and 48, which belts are arranged in the same manner and driven at the 4| to 43, and serve the same purpose as the latter with respect to thread group ,38. A driven wind-up roll 49 is positioned exteriorly of oven 40 for winding up the finished threads in group 38 as they emerge from the oven through a suitable slot therein.

Although each of the conveyor groups is shown and described as consisting of but three conveyors, it will be understood that any suitable number of conveyor belts may be provided acveyor belt having at the lateral margins thereof.

2. In apparatus for making continuous strip material, the combination of a flexible conveyor.

belt, and strips of elastic material attached to one face thereof at its lateral margins.

3. In apparatus for v i H material, the combination of a conveyor-belt of flexible material, and strips of rubber coexten sive therewith bonded thereto at its lateral mar.- gms.

4. In apparatus for making continuous strip material, the combination of a conveyor belt of flexible material having locally thickenedregions. on one face thereof at its lateral margins, a body of viscous material, and means for feedinfg the belt longitudinally through the said body ata depth suflicient to coat one face thereof with the viscous material, but not sufiicient to completely submerge the thickened marginal regions of the belt.

5. In apparatus for making continuousstrip material, the combination of an endless, flexible, conveyor belt having locally thickened regions on one face thereof at its lateral margins, a body of viscous material, a pulley'having oneregion of its perimeter positioned in said viscous'fbocly. below the level thereof, and means for .passing the conveyor belt about ened regions of the belt on the concave side thereof whereby the convex surface of the belt is coated with the material, the lateral thickened regions preventing, the material. from reachin cave side of the belt-and the pulley.

6. In apparatus for making continuous strip material, the combination of a pulley, an endless,

concave when passing around said pulley, on the marginal regions that project laterally of the strip' material in finished making continuous strip said pulley with the thickg the con pulley, and a body of viscous material below the pulley in contact with the convex side of the belt and adjacent sides of said marginal strips, but not extending above the latter.

7. In apparatus for making continuous strip material, the combination of a housing, a series of pulleys near the top thereof, a series of pulleys at the bottom thereof, an endless flexible belt extending into and out of said housing and 10 trained in reverse curves over the pulleys of the 

